The Dream is Over
by Nil1875
Summary: A possible direct continuation of the movie's end. What if Dom was still trapped in the dream? Who would go after him?  SPOILERS  Dom/Ari K Please R&R! ONESHOT


Title: The Dream is Over  
Pairing: Dom/Ari  
Summery: This story is a continuation of the very end of the movie so, if you haven't seen it I don't recommend you read this just yet. It has **SPOILERS!** This works off of the top spinning on the table at the end and the idea that Cobb may still be dreaming.

Bonjour! Alright so, I saw Inception today and this fic struck me after I saw the last shot and was walking out of the theater. Honestly, I think I went in there planning to write Dom/Ari fic, even though I didn't even know what their names were yet, it was just from previews. And upon seeing the movie I studied the characters a lot more closely then I normally would and this happened. And it actually works with the story line. XD

So please enjoy my first (And probably only) Inception fanfic!

First PoV is Cobb's then it switches to normal third person.

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"You can't stay here!" she called out to me. I could see that her knuckles were white from trying to hold onto the beam and that her grip was slipping.

"I'm not staying. Saito's here somewhere. I'll find him and then I'll find my way out," I shouted over the noise of the raging storm.

Ariadne's eyes caught mine and she let go, falling away into the winds and the real world. I turned to Mal once more. It was time to let her go.

Saito and I got out and he made the call just like he promised. It was all I could do not to go over to Ariadne and hug her close to me. But I didn't, I wasn't that good with showing my emotions, why start now in front of everyone.

Miles was at the airport when we landed and he took me home. I could hardly believe it as I walked through my house and my hand instinctively went to my pocket, pulling out the top I always carried and spun it on the table. As I waited for it to topple, to tell me this was real, Miles called out into the garden and I was distracted by two shrill screams of 'Daddy!'

I rushed to my two little angels and scooped them up in my arms. I would never let them go again, no matter what.

It wasn't until hours later when I returned to the dining room that I remembered about the top. My eyes landed on my faithful totem and my heart clenched as my stomach dropped and twisted into knots.

It was still spinning.

***On the Plane***

***Normal PoV***

"Why isn't he waking up?" Ariadne asked. Her eyes darted around the plane to each member of their small team.

The plane had landed safely in LA and the passengers had all left already as everyone stood around Cobb's comatose form.

"He was right there with me," Saito said quietly.

"Did he stay?" Ariadne bit her thumbnail. "He said he was coming out. Do you think he got stuck or…"

"There's no way to know," Eames said.

"But we can go after him can't we?" she asked. "We have to go back."

"Excuse me, is there a problem in here?" Everyone turned to see Robert Fischer standing in the doorway. "Is there something wrong with you're friend?"

"It's a medical condition," Arthur supplied quickly. "He just needs a place to rest and he'll come out of it eventually."

"If you would like, I have a facility that would match your needs and give him all the privacy he needs until he's recovered," Fischer offered.

They all glanced at each other uneasily. Being this close to Fischer so soon after what they had done was risky, but what choice did they have? Ariadne was nodding already and the others reluctantly agree as she squeezed Cobb's hand subtly. They didn't need questions raised right now.

***Two Days Later***

***New York City***

"We have no idea where he is, this is completely stupid! Why are you insisting on doing this?" Arthur yelled at Ariadne as she whizzed around the room, preparing to go into Cobb's dreams. The New York house was set up as a medical facility for long term patients and Fischer had told them to use it as long as they needed and though Arthur was amazed as the change in the man already, he was against what Ariadne had planned and wasn't shy about letting her know it.

"Because I love him!" she shouted back. "And I can't let him stay trapped their for god knows how many years, suffering and alone! Because he deserves someone to fight for him after everything he's been through and because he doesn't deserve to be alone anymore."

Ariadne quickly attached the machine to her wrist and slipped into Cobb's dreams before Arthur could say anything else or try to stop her.

She opened her eyes and saw Paris. The first place she had met him. She headed north and soon she was standing outside the café where he had shown her how to manipulate dreams. As she walked inside a waitress came up to her and handed her a folded slip of paper.

Thanking her, Ari took the paper and read the address on it. She hailed a cab and made her was there as quickly as she could. The address was a hotel and the number on the back of the paper was a room. There was also a keycard inside the note, which she used when she reached the room. She pushed open the door to found Cobb asleep on the bed, attached to a dream machine.

"Damnit," she muttered. She knew this wouldn't be easy but she had hoped he wouldn't be all the way in the bottom level of dreams. She had thought maybe he had at least made it out to the third or forth levels. It looked like she was wrong.

She lay down beside him and attached herself to the machine easily slipping into the next dream.

She was in Japan. I was night and she had no idea where to start. She didn't know the area or the language and she knew it could take her longer than either one of them had.

It took her nearly three months to find her way to his apartment. She found him in a chair in his living room. She didn't want to think about how long it was in the fourth level and quickly hooked herself up, descending into the third dream.

America now. Chicago. Briefly she wondered if somehow this was reality and she took the chess piece out of her pocket and put it on a table. It took too long to fall, made too dull a sound when it hit and she knew she still had to find him. She began her search again.

Many more months passed while she tried to find him and finally she did, almost a year later. He was in bed in an old house on the edge of the city. She sat in the chair beside his bed and touched his pale face and whispered "I'm here for you," before she entered the last level and opened her eyes on the same sandy beach where he had spent so much time.

Ari coughed as she emptied the water from her lungs and sat up, dragging herself out of the water. She moved as quickly as she could now, running through the streets to where she knew his house would be. Down the elevator and into the hallway. She didn't know how long it had been, but she was worried it had been too long.

She entered the dining room and heard laughter coming from the open door. She looked out into the back yard and saw him.

He stood there next to a handsome man and in front of them two little children played. His face was soft, but laced with pain, she could see it around his eyes. He was older, so much older and her heart wrenched.

"Dom!" she called out.

He turned slowly to look at her and her heart stopped as their eyes met. He was inside in a second with the door shut behind him.

"What are you doing here, Ari?" he asked, his voice breaking. "Why now?

"I'm here to take you home," she whispered, reaching up to caress the lines around his face. "Dom, how long has it been?" Tears were washing down her face as his hand covered hers.

"That's my son out there. And my grand children. Ari it's been almost forty years."

"God, Dom. How long have you lived? How long have you been here alone?" Her hand tangled in his white hair and he smiled.

"Too long. I knew this wasn't real, I knew it was a dream. But I could never break free, not without help." He pressed his forehead into her and his eyes slid shut. "Thank you, Ari."

"I couldn't leave you alone," she whispered. She closed her own eyes and tilted her head forward to kiss him.

As soon as their lips met she felt like she was falling and she opened her eyes. She was sitting in the armchair in Chicago next to his bed, her hand intertwined with his. He was opening his eyes slowly and he sat up, still holding her hand tightly.

"Are we?"

"Not yet," she shook her head. "We still have a ways to go."

Dom smiled a little, tugging on her hand and pulling her onto the bed, his mouth covering hers aggressively. Again she was falling, even faster this time and when she opened her eyes they were in Japan.

He stood up this time, running his hands through his hair and looking in a mirror. With each passing dream his youth was returning even though the weight he felt in his bones remained.

"Just two more," Ari said quietly, a hand on his shoulder.

"Ari will you marry me?" Dom asked quietly. "I've had a long time to think about this…and I always regretted not being able to tell you that I loved you. It took me too long to let go of Mal and by then, you were gone and I was trapped."

Ari smiled. "Ask me again when we get out of here."

Dom nodded as he smiled, leaning down to kiss her again. They woke next to each other in Paris and Dom had to smile widely.

"This is the first place we met," he whispered.

Ari returned his smiled as she hovered over him. "I know. This is the last place before the real world. Do you want to leave now? Or stay for a while?"

"The only thing I want is to be able to kiss you and not be waking up from a dream," Dom said. "All I want is reality."

Ari nodded and leaned down to seal their lips. The kiss lasted longer this time before they fell and when she opened her eyes at last she saw Arthur pacing the room. She glanced at the clock and saw that it had barely been half an hour.

She twisted her head to the side and saw Dom smiling at her and she reached out her hand to grasp his.

"My god, you did it…" they heard Arthur say, but they were too lost in each other.

"Marry me," Dom whispered.

"Of course. But there are some people here that will want to see you first though," she teased with a smiled. She nodded to Arthur and he opened the door, his expression still flabbergasted.

Philipa and James came running into the room, tackling their father in little blurs of color, color drastically different from his dreams. They were both bigger, taller, older and Dom held them close preying that he wasn't dreaming.

As if reading his mind, Ari held out her hand and knew exactly what she wanted. He handed her the top, putting all his trust in her as she spun it. His eyes were locked with hers as the top spun on the side table.

"Come on you two, come play with Uncle Arthur. Let these two have a minute to talk."

The children nodded, hugging their father once more and followed Arthur out of the room, leaving Dom and Ari alone.

"I love you," Dom rasped, the raw emotion evident in his voice.

"I love you too," Ari whispered, tears running down her face. She leaned forward as his hand cupped her cheek and their lips met.

On the side table the top wobbled and crashed onto it's side, rolling off onto the floor and spun into a corner where it stopped at last. The dream was over. Reality could begin.

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Please review! I hope you liked it!


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